Prospective clients have no way of knowing what quality of service you will provide, so they must take clues from the appearance of your business card, stationery, resume or brochure and other materials; your physical appearance and grooming; your manners and communication on the telephone; and even your promptness in returning phone calls.

The quality of your materials influences the perceived value of your services. Printed materials, whether produced professionally or on your personal computer, don’t have to be costly, but they should be error-free. Typographical, spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors in printed materials are inexcusable. We all make mistakes as we compose, but correcting, editing and proofreading are the second half of the job.

It is critical to have someone else proofread your writing and composition, because we all have difficulty finding our own mistakes. I frequently notice errors in professional brochures, even some that are quite expensively prepared. I have to conclude that not enough people proofread them.

YOUR OFFICE TALKS

Often the initial impression you make on a prospective client results from the phone response in your office. If the phone rings several times before being answered by a person or a recording, the caller feels that his time has been disrespected. If the person answering is flippant, cold or, worse, rude, your image has been tarnished, perhaps permanently.

The time it takes you to return calls received by someone else, on your voice mail or through an answering service is also a factor in the prospect’s view of your services. An inquirer can’t help but associate your promptness or tardiness with your perceived work ethic and respect for deadlines.

In addition, if you determine that you can’t or won’t accept the engagement, are you as polite and as helpful as possible under the circumstances? You may not want this case, but you do want this person to be a referral source—the most effective kind of marketing.

APPEARANCES DO MATTER

“Dressing for success” doesn’t necessarily mean wearing a suit, or stockings and low heels for a woman if her suit has a skirt. What it does mean is deliberately deciding what to wear for encounters with prospective clients, keeping your impression in mind. Whether the most effective look would be a business suit or other attire representing your profession or trade is an individual decision, but make it a conscious decision, because it matters. Perhaps a person could be sloppy or careless in appearance and be meticulous in work performance, but the prospective client has no way of knowing that—he can only conclude by what he sees and hears.